Category Archives: Water Damage

Water damage is whereby your home and the objects within it are significantly damaged due to exposure to water. Water damage can be caused by many different issues like drains leaking, damaged or leaking water pipes, damaged showers and many more. Water damage claims can involve small amounts of damage to floors or extensive damage to home appliances. Here are 3 things you should do to manage potential water damage situations.

1: Water Leak Detection Investigation

Identifying a leak before it happens and before it causes any significant damage is one of the smartest and worthwhile investments you can make as a homeowner. Hiring experts to use top of the range equipment, technology and give their expert advice will allow you to identify and manage a water damage situation before it ever even happens. This investigation process will potentially save you big money in the long run so the smart thing to do is get one done immediately because a water problem could potentially be forming without your knowledge.

2: Get Help Managing An Insurance Claim

Firstly when getting a home you should always factor in water damage cover into your home and contents insurance package. When a potential water damage situation arises it is essential to get an experienced and efficient team of experts to deal with your water damage claim. After water damage, everybody wants to get their home back to the way it was before the damage as soon as possible, so ensuring a quick and responsive service to water damage claims is key. Getting help and assistance with an insurance company is important in order to ensure you are looked after properly.

3: Water Damage Protocol

It is important to be prepared for every type of situation that can arise. Due to climate change, different economic factors and home operating systems it is very difficult to determine when a flood or water crises might occur. Water damage can be devastating to your premises so as a premises owner it is important to have a water damage plan/protocol to look to for guidance to best manage the situation. Your water crisis plan should include…

Creating a water damaged list of everything that has been affected

Removing as much of the water you can, when it is safe to do so

Turning off electricity to avoid serious danger, if it is safe to do so

Call the professionals for advice, managing of the situation and repair of the damage

As water freezes and becomes ice it expands, which puts a huge amount of pressure on the pipes in your home or business causing them to burst. Once that ice melts you’re left with a piping system that’s no longer fit for purpose and a huge water leak that can cause untold damage to your property. Avoid damaging water leaks during this cold snap, here are 3 tips to keep pipes from freezing and bursting.

1: Add Insulation Where Possible

Add insulation in every room possible. Some of the most common places that are neglected insulation-wise are attics, crawl spaces and basements. All of which will commonly have water pipes running through them. The better insulated they are, the easier it will be to maintain higher temperatures and keep those pipes from freezing, bursting and flooding your building.

2: Seal Cracks & Holes Near Pipes

Often where a water pipe goes through a wall and outside of your home or office, the whole that has been made to accommodate the pipe won’t be exactly flush. This means that even though the gaps between the wall and the pipe may be very small, they still exist and are constantly leaving warm air out and cold air into your property. Using a caulk gun, you should take care to seal up the holes and cracks around pipes on both the interior and exterior walls.

3: Close Off Water Supply To The Outdoors

Most homes around Ireland have taps and hoses outside in the garden. The pipes leading out to these have to face the coldest of temperatures and are by far the most likely to freeze and burst in sub-zero temperatures as they don’t get the benefit of indoor heating. You should detach and drain any outdoor hoses and put them into storage until the temperatures begin to rise again and close inside water valves that supply outdoor taps. Once this is done you should open the valves at all of the outdoor water supplies and leave them open so if any water remains in the system it will have room to expand without bursting your pipes.

If it’s already too late and you have a burst pipe that’s flooding your home, call Advance Maintenance Ltd on 021-486-6133 now.

If you’re ever unlucky enough to have to deal with flooding in your home, you have to be able to choose the right company to help you pick up the pieces and mitigate the damage. You will need a water damage repair company that has a wealth of experience dealing with insurance companies and that acts as fast as possible. But that’s not all, here are 2 more tips for choosing the best flood damage repair company.

24/7 Flood Damage Repair Services

If your home or business has the potential to be flooded, you need a flood damage repair company that operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. A lot of flood damage is caused at night time, if your chosen repair company closes at night they are putting your property at risk as they won’t be able to mitigate any damage until the morning. Having a water damage mitigation company that is always there for you when you need them most should be one of your top priorities.

Fully Licensed & Insured

To have the best chance of selecting the best flood damage repair company for your needs, make sure they are fully licensed and insured to carry out flood damage mitigation and repairs. If they aren’t licensed and insured then you should move on to the next candidate as it’s possible for them to do more harm than good.

There are very few things, if any, that can cause as much damage as water. Every second that goes by, without proper action being taken by a responsible and efficient flood damage repair company, significantly increases the risk of more damage to your property. When selecting the best company for your needs, remember to make sure they offer a 24/7 service 365 days a year and also ensure that they are fully licensed and insured to carry out all of the necessary repairs to get you back to your routine.

If you need a flood damage repair company, trust the experts at Advance Maintenance. Contact us today by visiting us online or by calling 021-486-6133.

With this year’s winter projected to be one of the coldest that we have ever experienced here in Ireland it’s more important than ever that you are prepared in order to avoid disasters like frozen pipes bursting. In this article I will be sharing 4 ways you can prevent frozen water pipes. These tips are especially essential if you are leaving your home unattended for any length of time over the winter months.

1: Insulate Your Pipes:

Keeping your water pipes insulated will help save them from the freezing conditions and give them the ability to endure freezing conditions for a little bit longer. However this will only stave off the cold for a limited amount of time, if the temperature falls below -2°C for more than four hours this won’t be enough to save them.

2: Don’t Turn Off Your Heating When You Are Away:

By this I don’t mean keep it on full blast day and night. Lower the temperature on your thermostat to as low as 10°C. This will prevent the temperature in your home from dropping dangerously low and into frozen pipe territory, while also not breaking the bank with the heating bill.

3: Keep Your Water Running:

I know what you’re thinking, you would be insane to leave your water running for a full week while you are on holidays, especially now that the water charges are in. However all that’s necessary is to keep faucets dripping at a slow rate, this prevents the water in the pipe from freezing as it isn’t kept in the ice cold pipe indefinitely.

4: Open Cabinet Doors

The final piece of advice that I will be giving you today is when you are away leave your cabinet doors open. Generally under the sink isn’t the best insulated place in the world so leaving the cabinet doors open allow the heat from your house make contact with your pipes and further reduce the risk of them flooding.

If your pipes do freeze and burst while you are away, call a professional. At AMLTD we have all the tools for the job, but hopefully it never comes to that. Good luck this winter and don’t let your pipes freeze.

According to leading UCC professor Robert Devoy, weather conditions will be more unpredictable in the coming years. He believes that stormy conditions and flash floods recently experienced will to be more widespread than the usual.

These storms and flash floods have greatly affected many areas throughout Cork like Douglas, Glanmire, Clonakilty, Midleton, Ballyvolane, Blackpool & also many other parts of the country. Based on Mr. Devoy’s statement on The Cork News, he believes that recent weather conditions are part of a trend that have been developing for the past three of four years.

Likewise, Mr. Devoy said that the abrupt changes in climate and significant increase in stormy weather conditions were consistent and were part of human-impacted climate change. It has been said that the devastating rainfall is caused by the oceans around Ireland getting significantly warmer. As a result, heavier rainfall is expected throughout the nation in the coming years ahead.

Global warming is indeed one of the most significant factors with regards the unpredictable weather conditions. In Ireland, different places have suffered from widespread floods and devastating storms. However, if floods have already affected a certain place or water damage to properties is likely, it is a must to know the best ways to get rid of it.

These days, there are ways that can help people lessen flood and water damage to their property. Here are some of the tips that should be known beforehand in order to reduce flood & water damage.

• Have the phone number of an expert Emergency Flood Damage Repair Company – In that way, families & businesses will have the chance to restore their damaged properties quickly after an incident.

• Put important documents in the safest area of the house – Households & Businesses should put their keepsakes and important documents in the safest area of the house or building. Lower areas of a house are more likely to be effected so placing important items on the second floor is more likely to protect them in the case of a flood.

• Home improvement and property maintenance should be considered – From cleaning the gutters and downspouts, up to making sure that there are no blockages in drains, maintenance must be done to avoid any problems during floods. Proper home improvement and property maintenance will lessen any factors that may further increase the chance of flooding around the home or business.

If you ever have any questions about flood or water damage or would like a free quote please give us a call on 086-2604782

You would think that water damage repair would be a fairly simple process. After all, you wipe up the water, lay a towel down over whatever’s left and that’s it, right?

Well, maybe so for smaller spills, like a glass of water. But when you consider major problems like a burst pipe in your bathroom, a flash flood in your neighbourhood, a hole in your roof, or a backed up sewer that empties into your home. Believe it or not, water damage can actually be more destructive to a home or business than a fire!

The reason is simple…..where a fire does it’s damage right away, water does its initial damage, and then there are the after effects, issues that, if not treated properly, can be fruitful and multiply, causing numerous additional problems and adding thousands of euro to the repair costs.

If you’re reading this while standing ankle deep in water in what used to be your family room……turn off the electricity! Water and electricity do not mix. Not even a little bit.

You’ll want to begin by moving all furniture and loose items out of the damaged area. These can be cleaned up and repaired elsewhere and won’t hinder the water extraction process.

Then you will need to extract the water and remove it from the premises. Water extraction and removal is the process of removing the excess water through use of wet-dry vacs or pumping equipment. Once that is done, you will still need to remove the remaining moisture from carpets, hardwood flooring, and any other surfaces. This is done through the use of high velocity fans, air movers, and dehumidifiers, placed strategically around the damaged area. They should be moved periodically to insure complete coverage of the area. It may take up to several days to thoroughly dry all surfaces.

You’ll now want to clean and disinfect all carpets, hardwood flooring, and any other surfaces, as well as check basements and crawlspaces for remaining water. Dark and damp places are a breeding ground for mould, which can release toxins into the air causing health issues from mild allergic reactions to lung disease and even death. Mould remediation is a difficult process and should be handled by a professional.

Once all surfaces have been dried out, you can begin to ascertain what sorts of structural repairs are required.

Advance Maintenance Ltd provides a totally free insurance claim management service for all building insurance claims from quotation to completion

Arrange a site visit within 24 hours of your call

Ensure your property is secured and the repairs addressed as soon as possible.

Assess the extent of the damage which has been caused.

Meet with the Loss Adjuster appointed by you insurance company

Prepare a detailed specification of Proposed Remedial Works.

Negotiate costs with the Loss Adjuster for the consideration of the Insured.

Draw up a repair schedule and time frame for restoration work to be carried out.

Carry out repairs as agreed with the Loss Adjuster.

Project manage all reinstatement works until completion, at no extra cost.